1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a communication environment configuration for a router, and more particularly, to a apparatus and method for automatic router configuration.
2. Background of the Related Art
FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating the relationship between a router and a data circuit terminating equipment (DCE).
The DCE is an apparatus for establishing, protecting, and releasing a connection between data terminal equipment DTE and a line, or signal exchange, signal encoding, etc. For analog transmission (for example, in a telephone-type data network), the DCE corresponds to a modem. For digital transmission, the DCE corresponds to a data service unit (DSU). The DTE is referred to as a terminal apparatus connected to a data communication line, which can include a computer in a communication network.
The interface between the DTE and the DCE is the definition of boundaries or boundary conditions between DTE and DCE placed at a subscriber's line terminal unit in a data communication network, for example, physical and electrical conditions relating to types of data lines or control lines for connecting the DTE and the DCE. The type of the interface includes V series analog transmission interfaces using a telephone network, X series digital transmission interface, and RS-232 defined by the EIT (Electrical Industries Association) according to the recommendation of the ITU.
A router is one particular kind of DTE, and is a connection apparatus between networks having the same transmission protocol. The router can easily be adapted to a large scale network configuration since it sends packets by selecting the most efficient path, performs flow control and various network management functions, and is not particular about the shape of a network.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a router according to the related art. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the related art router includes a built-in CPU or a serial communication controller (SCC) 11, a multi-protocol transceiver 12, a connector 13, and a data buffer 14, among which signal lines are connected. Of these signal lines, Rx and RxC lines are used for receiving data, while Tx and TxC lines are used for transmitting data. Control signal lines are used for signals representing the start and end of data transmission and reception. Depending on the protocol, the RxC and TxC may not be used.
The built-in CPU or serial communication controller 11 is an apparatus for processing data transmitted from a communication network and performing serial communication control function. The multi-protocol transceiver 12 is an apparatus capable of transmitting and receiving more than two protocol signals, which can transmit and receive digital signals, and can receive signals during transmission if a transmission frequency and a receiving frequency are different from each other.
The connector 13 provides a cable port to connect with the DCE, and different cables are connected to the cable port according to a hardware (H/W) protocol (or an interface).
The operation of the related art router will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The related art router operates according to a connection environment and a H/W protocol set when power is initially applied. Thus, in order to change the H/W protocol during the operation of the router, the router must be initialized by turning off the power, connecting the corresponding cable and then starting the router.
The built-in CPU or serial communication controller 11 sends a chip select (CS) signal to the data buffer 14 in order to recognize the H/W protocol from the cable connected to a wide area communication network during the initialization process. The data buffer 14 enabled upon receipt of the CS signal, and discriminates a H/W protocol through a mode [2:0] line to send the same to the built-in CPU or serial communication controller 11. The built-in CPU or serial communication controller 11 completes initialization by executing a program corresponding to the transmitted protocol mode.
The process of discriminating a H/W protocol will now be described with reference to FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, W1, W2 . . . Wn represent holes of the connector 23 of the router connected to the mode line [2:0]. The holes are engaged with P1, P2 . . . Pn, which represent pins of the connector 33 of the DCE when the router is connected to the connector 33 of the DCE (or cables). At this time, the pins of the DCE connector 33 are expressed in 3-digit bits having a value of high and low level according to whether the pins are in the GROUND state or in the OPEN state. For example, if the 3-digit bits are [1 0 0], the first pin has a high level value set by a pull-up resistor R1 16 of a protocol mode line in the open state, and the second and third pins have a low level value by connection with GROUND. Thus, DCE connector pins P1, P2, and P3 are set to open or ground to thereby adjust the identification code of a protocol mode value.
Therefore, the protocol mode [1 1 1] represents a state in which cables are not connected, [1 0 0] represents the V.35 connection mode, and [1 1 0] represents the connection mode. If there is any identification code to be added, it is encoded so as to avoid the redundancy of the existing mode.
Since the related art router cannot recognize a change in protocol mode during operation, it must be restarted after installing cables of the corresponding protocol mode in the power-off state. Consequently, if a problem occurs in a private network, it is difficult to rapidly convert the network into a public network or an ISDN network. In addition, the restarting of the router inhibits the stability of a network, and increases maintenance cost, since additional manpower for network management is needed. Moreover, the replacement of cables during the operation of the router can cause an instantaneous electrical shock inside the router, thereby damaging the circuit in the router and reducing the life span of the router.
The above references are incorporated by reference herein where appropriate for appropriate teachings of additional or alternative details, features and/or technical background.